“My son, why speak such inauspicious words in front of the King of Chu? Speak clearly!” Wang Er’s face turned ashen as he cursed, “It’s fortunate the King of Chu is not bothered by you.”
“Thank you, King of Chu, thank you, King of Chu.” Da Niu, remembering to shed tears, quickly spoke, “I heard them say something like ‘Hongtian Lei’ was buried there, I’m afraid something bad will happen!”
Hongtian Lei, Ye Feng tilted his head and thought for a long time. Historically, it was rumored that the three Zhang brothers had the ability to transform beans into soldiers, but he hadn’t seen any real accounts of controlling thunder and lightning.
Half-believing, Ye Feng slowly spoke to Da Niu, “Did you see what it was exactly, how powerful it was? Speak clearly!”
Da Niu hastily gestured with his hands, “About this thick, this long, the sound was very loud, and a thick smoke formed on the ground. He said it was heavenly thunder falling!”
Da Niu pointed at Yu Shi, his face flushed red, and said, “He told me this too, otherwise I wouldn’t have believed anything about heavenly thunder.”
Heavenly thunder, heavenly thunder, Ye Feng thought for a long time. The only thing that resembled Da Niu’s description was gunpowder. No wonder, no wonder!
Since the time of Emperor Qin, there had been a tradition of alchemy. Perhaps those three brothers had accidentally discovered gunpowder and made explosives. If so, it could indeed cause danger.
“Do you know how much he carried?” Ye Feng asked urgently, after all, a large quantity was no joke.
Seeing Ye Feng’s tense expression, Da Niu dared not speak carelessly. He frowned and thought for a long time before speaking cautiously, “Two carts, all used in the place the king mentioned.”
“Are you sure?” Ye Feng countered. He didn’t disbelieve Da Niu, but it was impossible for the city guards not to know if someone was carrying so many strange things in and out of the city.
Da Niu seemed to see through Ye Feng’s suspicion and hurriedly explained, “He didn’t go himself; he used beggars. One tael of silver per person, and I was the one who gave him the silver!”
Ignoring Da Niu’s pained expression, Ye Feng got up and left, hurriedly ordering, “Have Lu Bu guard the city gate and let no one out. Also, send a troop of soldiers to arrest all beggars, and search three feet into the ground to find those things!”
Da Niu didn’t know that his information would make Ye Feng so tense and looked confused. Ye Feng quickly added, “You shouldn’t be idle either. Take your brothers and search. For every one you find, this king will reward you with a string of cash!”
One cart, and a reward of one string of cash for each item. Da Niu couldn’t calculate how much silver that was, his eyes shining as he stared at Ye Feng.
“Once this king speaks, it’s as hard to take back as a team of horses. However, there’s one condition: no matter who finds the item, they absolutely cannot hide it. All of it must be handed over!” Ye Feng, fearing that a large-scale search would arouse the suspicion of those with ill intentions, coughed lightly, “There’s a curse from the Yellow Turban Army on it. If anyone hides it, they should consider whether their life is hard enough.”
Ye Feng frowned and hurried away. Those who had originally harbored selfish intentions immediately restrained themselves upon hearing Ye Feng’s words and went to dig with various tools.
A string of cash, that was like money falling from the sky. Moreover, in this era, ordinary people would absolutely not dare to touch anything cursed. In an instant, the digging became feverish.
This news swept through Liangzhou City like a gust of wind. The people clutched the items they had found to their chests, as if afraid of being robbed.
“How much did you dig today!”
“Three strings of cash? How about you!”
“I have a little more than you, ten strings of cash!”
“…”
Such voices echoed continuously in Liangzhou City. Ye Feng coldly stared at the people in front of him, his brows furrowed even tighter as he saw more and more Hongtian Lei.
If the people in the city knew that Yu Shi was already dead, they would undoubtedly act recklessly. Ye Feng had asked Da Niu; Yu Shi reported every three days, but it was already the second day, and the explosives were still less than half of what Da Niu had said. How could he not be anxious?
“Everyone, everyone!” Ye Feng said urgently, looking at the long queue outside the General’s mansion.
“Holy crap, what’s going on? Are they not buying anymore?”
“Should I just go home and herd cattle?”
“Nonsense. If it were two strings of cash, I’d be searching with a lamp today. It’s hard to get me to do anything now!”
“…”
Ye Feng pressed his hands downwards and quickly said, “Everyone has done their best, but there are still more of these things. So, starting today, the General’s mansion will provide the funds. Two strings of cash per item, how about that? And those with large quantities will stop being acquired tonight, and no more will be acquired after tomorrow!”
Upon hearing this, everyone gasped. The good days were ending, and they had to search quickly.
Furthermore, Ye Feng’s move was to prevent hoarding. In any case, Ye Feng was determined to eliminate this hidden danger for Liangzhou City, but if any escaped, Ye Feng couldn’t do anything about it.
In an instant, the queue outside the General’s mansion was reduced by half. There were also scattered individuals who came with boxes to exchange.
Time flew by, and soon the two days were over. Ye Feng stared at the single cart of explosives with a hint of fear. If something truly happened, the consequences would be unimaginable, let alone that no one knew where those explosives had ended up.
“Let fate decide!” Ye Feng forced a smile, “This king can’t manage any more matters!”
“Your Highness, rest assured, good fortune will favor the righteous!” Qin Shu approached Ye Feng and said slowly, “This servant has already had people strengthen patrols to ensure everything is foolproof!”
“That’s all we can do.” Ye Feng sighed heavily, drinking tea and feeling a stifling pressure in his chest that he couldn’t release.
Seeing Ye Feng’s worried expression, Diao Chan stepped forward and said softly, “Seeing Your Highness so troubled, why don’t I take you to a pleasant place!”
Ye Feng forced a smile, “Good, I’ll do as the beauty arranges.”
The two spoke no words and sat in the carriage. They traveled to the land that Emperor Ling had promised Ye Feng. Unlike before, a small wooden building now stood there. Diao Chan took Ye Feng’s hand and led him straight up.
“This is something my sisters and I asked Qin Shu to prepare in advance. In the future, it will be very pleasant for us sisters and Your Highness to watch the comings and goings here,” Diao Chan forced a smile, “Your Highness, please don’t blame me for acting without permission.”
“This king dotes on beauties, how could he punish you? I just don’t know how the beauty intends to reward me!” Ye Feng chuckled softly, he couldn’t ignore Diao Chan’s kindness.
“As long as I am with Your Highness, I don’t care what I get. I beg Your Highness…”
Before Diao Chan could finish speaking, Ye Feng covered her mouth and whispered, “Has Qin Shu kept the household items safe?”
“Everything is according to Your Highness’s instructions, in a dry place, but absolutely no sparks can be seen.”
“Good!” Ye Feng nodded heavily, and then extinguished the candle. “Beauty, just wait quietly. Something big might happen here.”
If you ask how Ye Feng knew, it was because a strange smell of sulfur wafted over, making Ye Feng feel very uncomfortable.
“Did you bring the things?” a sharp voice rang out, like a burly man speaking with a choked throat.
“Everything is here, but what about what I want?” The masked man holding a box said, “If anything is missing, I’ll hold you accountable.”
“My master doesn’t know how much of that stuff he brought in, but Ye Feng has disrupted quite a bit. If you want the remaining bit, you’ll have to pay more!” the burly man said coldly, “Even if you don’t give it, there are plenty of people who want it!”
“Who else but the楼主 has the ability to send your brothers safely out of Liangzhou?” the masked man chuckled coldly, grabbed the box he brought, and prepared to leave. “If you refuse, when it falls into Ye Feng’s hands, you’ll wish you were dead!”
“Wait,” the burly man’s eyes were complex. “I’m willing to trade with you, but you have to guarantee my safety!”
“Of course, our楼主 has never broken a promise, and has even traded with the current Son of Heaven!”
Son of Heaven? Ye Feng’s mind raced. Who else could it be but Emperor Ling? What kind of trade? It was only a few days ago that Emperor Ling was unwell, and nothing had been discovered yet!
“Such a grand gesture, to make the Son of Heaven ill and deceive him into relinquishing power, there is probably only your楼主. However…” the burly man said sarcastically, “I heard that person doesn’t take it seriously. Your楼主 might have wasted his efforts!”
“Foolish creature, shut up!” the masked man roared, “You know nothing. This is precisely why our楼主 is so brilliant. This way, the various lords can use the slogan of ‘cleansing the ruler’s side.’ Once there are multiple outbreaks, I don’t believe that Ye Feng has the ability to restore order!”
Ye Feng suddenly broke out in a cold sweat. His previous plan had been manipulated. In this case, was he now the player or the pawn?
And what did the person behind all this want to do?
These questions lingered in Ye Feng’s mind for a long time. He heard the burly man praise him repeatedly, “Good planning, truly good planning. However, our master is not a fool like Ye Feng; he wants real gold and silver.”
“Alright, here you go!” The masked man casually threw the box over, steadily caught another box, and then took out a map, igniting it without hesitation with a fire starter!
“What do you mean by this!” the burly man, holding a piece of white paper, roared angrily, “You want to double-cross us? Brothers, attack!”
“You want to double-cross us? You’re not worthy!” The masked man smiled slightly, “King of Chu has been a lurking gentleman for so long, don’t you want to come out and meet me? Or are you reluctant to part with your delicate beauty.”
Since he had been discovered, Ye Feng generously rose from the wooden building and chuckled softly, “The楼主 is truly a master strategist. I also wish to see him. I wonder if I…!”
“That’s a matter for later. Currently, only they know where the remaining things are!” the masked man said to the burly man, “King of Chu will have to ask them if he wants to know.”
“Hand it over obediently, and this king can help you kill him. Otherwise, you will be the ones who die!” Ye Feng knew he was being led by the nose, but he couldn’t help it. For the sake of the common people, he couldn’t pursue the masked man!